Oogway's adventure - PERMA HIATUS
by Mateko
Summary: Takes place in the past. That's the story the third movie told us about Oogway with better details and what precisely happened (Fanon). This is a spin-off series for the legend of otherworld, you can enjoy it without knowing the main one, but if you want better details read Chapter 4, P3. #KFPFRIEND16
1. Brothers in army - Prologue 1

**This story is on hiatus. I'll surely rework this and finish it. This piece contains my old writing style and lots of mistakes. If you wish to read something of mine I encourage you to read other stories that are not marked as "Old pieces" or you could read "Legend of the Otherworld" my main focus at the moment. Thank you.**

* * *

"Sir, our men can't keep up with the enemies. I might suggest to retreat, reorganize and try again later!" A rhino gave me a simple yet terrible report on our actual condition.

"I see." I calmly replied "Prepare the troops and leave."

He winced "Sir, aren't you coming with us?"

A bull stepped his way between them "You cowards can leave! Me and Oogway can defeat them alone too!"

"Forgive my arrogance, but…you two against an entire army? There's no way you're gonna win."

I ignored him, my friend, instead, threatened him with a terrifying glance. He was ready to pierce him with his jade knives.

"Let him go, Kai." I said analysing a map.

The rhino slowly walked backwards trying to not show how scared he was and disappeared outside. "Same old plan, right?" Kai started to sharpen his weapon.

I was going to say something else, but it changed when they heard people outside screaming.

"They were already here?! I thought they checked this place before…" Kai yelled upset. Being fooled and defeated by an ambush was humiliating.

I stood up "I guess the same old plan will work." picked up a spear "This time I won't lose, Kai."

He grinned excited "You're still hoping to defeat me at my own game?! You should give up! I always defeat more people than you!"

"We'll see that." narrowing my eyes accepting the challenge.

10, 20, 30…they fell one after another so easy that we couldn't keep the count anymore. I was so proud, so confident in myself. Nobody could defeat me, nothing could touch me. I left my guard down.

They knew about us there, they knew how strong we were and took countermeasures. A rain of arrows fell upon us and our men. It came so fast that I didn't notice. I was too busy building my ego up talking with Kai.

When the first one pierced my left leg I couldn't believe it. I completely forgot what was pain and what it felt like. My mind, my vision went crazy for a couple of seconds and it happened again on the opposite leg. I fell on the ground, I saw my own blood leaving my body. It was too much to handle. I gave up to it and lost consciousness.

I lost the track of time. I woke up, lost consciousness and again countless times. I noticed that someone was carrying me, that I didn't die, but I couldn't focus enough on who he was and where he was bringing me. I passed out once more.

I woke up again. The pain was unbearable, can I just die already? I noticed that this time I wasn't moving. My vision was still blurry, shadows surrounded me. They pointed at me something gold and I felt quickly better. My vision went back to normal, my pain was now just a bad dream.

The shadows were now pandas. Black, white and fluffy all around me.

"Where can I let him rest?" Someone behind me asked to them. I recognised that voice. Kai dragged the whole way down here? Alone? I was surprised he didn't let me die.

They pointed towards one of their houses, probably an empty one. Kai putted me on his arms again a brought me there. "What happened…" I finally spoke.

"Don't talk. Rest now." He insisted, but I was out for so long…I didn't want to sleep AGAIN.

Kai walked outside leaving me behind. I think he's curious about what they did to me before. I closed my eyes again and I fell asleep.

In the middle of the night I heard some weird noises and I raised half of my body from the bed. "Kai?" I called for him thinking that he came back to watch over me, but nothing. I tried to stand up. I rested enough and looked over my legs, both bandaged.

I wasn't able to walk and I fell on the floor moaning in pain "Did I really almost die for two arrows in my legs?" It destroyed everything I believed in.

"You can use this…" Someone there listened to me and replied "If you want" added shyly.

I tried to follow the voice, but it was so dark, but I saw that he handed me over a wooden stuff to help. "Thank you…" I said trying to give an image to him. He looked at me hoping that I was able to stand up now and I did it. "What's your name?" I questioned him approaching closer.

He whispered something, but I couldn't hear clearly. He walked backwards, was he scared? I widened my eyes when I saw who he was and his peculiarity. A panda in a blue and green vest. It's a panda village what should I expect? I was surprised by his white hands. Pandas should've black hands not white! I tried to ask about that, but he ran away and closed me inside.

I returned to my bed, it was pointless to stay up. I'll look for him tomorrow in the morning.

I opened my eyes seeing Kai watching over me. Excited and worried at the same time. "What did you find out?" I smiled getting up.

"Something you would really like." He grinned "Leave everything to me."

"What?!" I complained dragging myself towards him using my stuff "I can help! Whatever you wanna do."

He crossed his arms and laughed "You can barely walk. What are you going to do?"

"I said, I'm fine." I remarked trying to show him my resistance.

"You know what? Maybe you will help me."

I widened my eyes when he suddenly changed his mind. He walked outside leaving the door open and I slowly followed him. I didn't leave my room for god knows how long and it was my first time watching the whole village. I saw a peaceful and happy place, pandas walking, rolling, shouting all around me. It was nice…a weird feeling overwhelmed me completely. I couldn't explain what it was.

Soon I forgot about Kai and where he was going, I stopped as soon as I saw that panda again. He was talking with his friends.

"We're going to our daily lessons! See you later Nova!" They shouted to him rolling away. He waved at them watching them go by.

"Nova, uh?" I repeated approaching to him. "That's not a common name for where we live."

He didn't seem to be interested in talking with me, but more interested in what condition I appeared. "They didn't heal you completely…" he muttered to himself ignoring me.

I tried to understand what he meant, but I didn't have the chance to. He left heading the same place where Kai was going.

I walked across the entire village and reached the edge of it. I saw a group of pandas dressed with a golden tunic moving all together around a peach tree. Were they training?

"I'm sorry, but we can't teach you." One of them said to Kai.

I knew it. Kai asked them to show him how to use that weird thing.

"It's a secret technique. Only pandas can learn it." Another one added.

"Chi can be dangerous in the wrong hands…" the third one continued.

Chi? That's the name of that gold glowing stuff?

Kai begged towards them "I won't force you to teach me….but, at least, heal my friend! I know you can completely restore his wounds…"

The pandas looked at each other through fully. "We did what we could do. He needs to rest. His wounds will soon heal."

Kai was upset. They didn't even want to recover his friend. He tried to be as humble as possible, but he had enough. He was going to attack them when a voice interrupted him.

"YOU'RE LIARS!" Nova's voice shouted from Kai's back towards the pandas. "I don't understand your behaviour. WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE?!"

"Nova…please calm down. You know perfectly why."

"What's the belief our village is built on?" The panda asked walking past Kai and closer to them.

They remained silent. I wonder what's going on between them.

"If you don't say it. I'll do it for you. We believe that there's good in everyone. They just need to try, right?" He continued asking the bull the stood up "He bowed towards you, like you were some sorts of gods, asking you to simply HEAL him."

"They are warriors, Nova. Healing them would mean that we're on their side and they'll go back to fight…to kill more innocent people."

"That's just a stupid excuse. If you don't heal this tortoise you won't be different from them! They deserve help and we should help everyone who came here!"

The pandas glanced at each other again and nodded "Bring here the tortoise."

Kai turned to me, picked me up and dropped my body on the ground right in front of them.

And again their bodies started to shine with golden lights. Now I was able to examine what they were doing. Their putted their paws towards me and injected some weird magic things in me. I felt better, even better than I was before of getting injured.

"Try to walk now." One of them suggested me.

I easily stood up like nothing ever happened. I was surprised and shocked what kind of weird powers are…I needed to know more.

"Now please…leave our village at once." He said.

"Please let us repay your kindness…" I bowed again hoping to get more time.

Kai did the same again. He read my mind.

"There's nothing for you here."

It was going bad. I didn't know what to say. Forcing them to keep us will raise suspects. They trapped us.

"That's not true." Nova spoke again "We need a lot of things." He opened a scroll and started to read "We need to repair some houses. When rain starts there are holes everywhere. There are so many cubs to take care of. We need someone who can watch over them for a couple of hours to let the parents rest for a bit. We're running out of food. Too many people to feed. We must ask to the surroundings about trades. There are—"

"OK, NOVA STOP NOW." Another panda joined. It was bigger compared to the others, but he was wearing the same gold tunic. "We perfectly know our current situation and…since they are willing to help us we will let them stay."

Nova stared at him differently, like annoyed by his presence there.

"But…you will look over them. If something happens you will be the one to pay for their crimes."

"Fine. Remember to change your rules because our beliefs are different from our actually actions." He turned his back to them and walked away.

I didn't know what to do, neither Kai. I glanced over both sides until I decided to follow Nova. "We should thank you for what you did…"

"You misunderstood." He quickly replied "I didn't do it for you or your friend." I stopped and let him go away. I wasn't really interested to hear what he had to say and probably he wasn't going to tell me either.

I removed my bandages around my legs, I was completely healed now. "I have a plan." Kai said after checking that nobody was listening.

"I know already. You want to earn their trust, learn their secret techniques, destroy everything and getting revenge on what they did to me." I quickly explained everything.

He laughed "That's why you're the best!"

"For a bloodthirsty stubborn fighter like you. It will be hard to be nice." I giggled mocking him.

"I bowed 3 times in my entire life towards someone and it happened in 2 days. I think I can do it."


	2. Cleaning sisters - Prologue 2

My very first day since my recovery was a simple visit around the village. Nova showed us how things worked there. Seemed like the whole village ate all together. There was only one kitchen right in the middle of it. From there the southern part was entirely dedicated to agriculture. They usually don't ask for food to outsiders and the northern part was the one we were the whole time, where the pandas live and where the golden dressed ones teach that interesting technique.

"We will begin tomorrow." Nova added "You are free to go today." Finished that phrase he walked away from us.

"Kai, I don't want to get rusty." I said raising up the wooden stuff that panda gave me the first day I arrived here "I have to catch up!"

He smiled at me excited, probably going to ask me the same thing "let's see how bad you became you dumb turtle" instead of his knives he picked up the first object he saw. "An iron staff, huh?" I felt like he didn't want to fight seriously with me.

I jumped towards him moving my staff left and right trying to break his defensive stance. He was just shielding himself from every hit.

"Are you going easy on me? Come on, what happened to my fierce full warrior I chose as partner?!" I wanted to see him fighting back, I didn't say let's train.

Kai understood my feelings and listened to my request. When our staffs crossed into each other he pushed me away and finally charged towards me starting to attacking me.

Dodging his attack I instinctively climbed one of their houses and the fight changed scenery. We started to exchange blow after blow on the roofs.

We both started to sweat and pant. I haven't got so much fun in years. My body and my mind gave everything to it when...

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Nova screamed behind me and I could never predict that, losing my focus I slipped and headbanged the floor very hard. "You're pathetic, Oogway" the bull laughed at me getting down to check on me.

I putted my paw on my head trying to ease the pain "What's wrong with you? We were just training!"

"The houses are already damaged I won't let you destroy everything around because you like to swing your stupid staff around!"

We ended up quarreling for a good amount of time until I retired myself into that same house where I came two days ago. "I thought pandas weren't so stubborn!" I complained.

"Calm down or you'll ruin our plan." He mocked me.

"I'll ruin it?! You are the one who can't take a single joke without trying to cut my head off!" I threw myself on the bed and went to sleep. Now sharing the same room with my friend.

That day passed by really fast. My new lifestyle was beginning already and I didn't know. Someone knocked at our door. I tried to ignore it, they will eventually leave I thought. It knocked again and again. I putted my pillow upon my head trying to push away that annoying sound. "It's time to get to work!" Nova shouted from the outside.

"But...IT'S DAWN." I yelled complaining. "Pandas aren't that kind of people who sleeps too much?" I said raising half of my body then yawning. "Yes, that's true." He confirmed.

"Then...SLEEP." After some seconds of silence I thought he gave up. Finally...peace.

"But that doesn't mean every panda does the same!" He slammed the door and walked inside. I sighed "Awesome..."

"Wake up your friend. I'll wait you outside." I needed a couple of try to wake up Kai and push him off the bed. Nothing could've woke him up, but when he sniffed the sweet scent of food he instantly ran outside. "You have such a simple mind..."

I thought Nova was alone. When I reached the place where they were I realized there was a girl with them. Another panda obviously. She wore a black and red vest and two ribbons on the opposite sides of her head, closer to her ears. She was the one cooking in that old-looking kitchen made with bamboo. I saw Kai sitting in front of them waiting for food.

"Oogway! You've gotta try this!" He said as soon as the girl lend him hot dumplings into a bowl.

"Did you wake her up on purpose to make us breakfast?" I asked curiously sitting next to Kai.

"I didn't ask her." He replied coldly. "You misunderstood again. I could never waste time on making food for you. She followed me on her own."

"Ahh...I get it." I smirked "She's your girlfriend!"

She blushed and turned her face away. "My girlfriend?!" He yelled "Did you see how ugly she is?!"

The girl smashed a bowl on his head "UGLY?! WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?!"

"They quarrel like an old married couple" Kai commented swallowing the dumplings when on the background they were still shouting at each other.

"WE ARE NOT A MARRIED COUPLE" They both said and turned towards him at the same time.

I started to laugh unconditionally, there was anything to say.

"I would marry you." Kai remarked "You cook good. That's the only thing that matters."

"Eating and fighting. The only things you care about."

"You're saying that like a bad thing." He burped.

"You're gross...what about some manners?"

"Don't let me say what you do when you sleep. THAT is nasty."

"At least I do that because I'm sleeping!"

Nova stared at us shouting at each other "Now who's the old married couple?"

Kai crossed his arms and looked away. I did the same. Nova exited from the kitchen, picked up something and gave it to us. I glanced at him confused. "What's this?"

He noticed that I didn't know anything about chores and teased me. "Oogway. I would like to introduce you Mister broom. Mister broom these guys are Oogway and Kai." He threw one to me and another to Kai "They said nice to meet you."

"I'm an elite warrior! I led army, I fight, I don't do chores." Kai commented his actual degradation to housekeeper.

"Listen, elite warrior, as far as I can remember you agreed to do everything."

"It's humiliating..." he added moving the broom around the area.

I couldn't resist. "Hey cleaning lady! You forgot your sweet cute apron." I handed him over a pink one.

"Oogway." He said like a volcano ready to erupt "put that thing away from me."

I hid my laughter and walked away from him starting to clean the kitchen. I really didn't know how to do it right. The panda girl grabbed the broom alongside with me "Here. Put your hands there and move it slowly. Otherwise you will only spread the dust even more." Her voice was very kind. She led me and gave me instructions step by step.

"You weren't joking..." Nova smirked "You really didn't know"

The panda pinched his arm "Don't tease him. He's doing his best! We should appreciate his help."

"I could've done it alone, faster and better, Yui." He remarked.

Road to road, house to house we cleaned and collected everything was out-of-place until Nova assigned us something else. "Come on! This should be easy for you two!" he cried out.

Yui was looking from the inside where were the holes to fix on the roofs and from down Nova was handing us wooden planks.

"I'm starting to think that fighting is less painful compared to this.." I panted to Kai.

"You never liked working out. That's why you're a weakling." He added hammering the nails to the planks.

"The only thing I noticed you WORKED OUT is your belly, Kai." I teased him.

He dropped everything and turned to me. "Did you really say that I'M FAT?!"

"Could you call them muscles?" I laughed touching his pudding-like belly. "you are always so funny"

He jumped on me and fell down on the ground right in front of Nova with Kai on top of me "This fat bull is going to crush me to death! He's SO fat!"

"Oogway you-"

"I'm really sorry to interrupt this gorgeous male moment, but there's another thing to do and we're done."

Me and Kai turned at him and said together upset "THERE'S MORE?!"

He brought us to the opposite side of the village. Where they cultivate fruits and vegetables. He gave us a barrel with some seeds. "Beans, rice, cabbages and radishes. Harvest the good ones, clean the spot and put new seeds."

We were tired after doing all these things and Yui offered us her help again. She guided and teached me again. In the middle of it I started a random conversation "Do you know why Nova accepted to look over us?"

"I thought he told you..." She said putting the seeds inside the dirt. "His father is the leader of our village. You met him yesterday!"

"I did?" That was unexpected to hear "Was that huge panda who came in the last moments?!"

She nodded "They don't get along very well. You saw that."

"What about his hands? I couldn't stop thinking how is that possible."

"Her mother was the last one of a particular species called reversed pandas."

"R-reversed?" I mumbled surprised.

"How can I put this...imagine me and swap my colors. Where I'm black put white and vice versa."

"Can I see her mother?"

"Unfortunately. She died to give birth to his son."

I didn't realize we finished. That conversation absorbed me entirely and the fatigue I was feeling before disappeared. "You two." Nova approached us "You did very good today. Go to sleep or eat or whatever you want. We will see tomorrow."

"TOMORROW?!" when he said that my pain came back instantly. I was okay thinking that I won't repeat the same tasks, but he broke my hopes. I fell on the ground ignoring everyone and everything. I needed to take a short break.

I woke up and realized I wasn't where I collapsed. I lifted my head from a table and tried to figure it out where I was now. I quickly find Kai not so far from me surrounded by female pandas, laughing and with a bottle in his hand. When I understood what he did I widened my eyes and rushed there upset. "Kai!"

"Uh? Is something wrong?" He tried his hard to contain himself, but his voice, his red cheeks and what he was holding. I couldn't mistake. "GIVE ME THAT" I scratched the bottle from his hand and glanced inside. White. "I told you to stop drinking Baijiu." I noticed that he drunk almost all of it. "I miss for a couple of minutes and you get drunk?!"

"I'm not drunk!" He said sobbing.

"That's it. You'll go to sleep." I stood up from the chair he putted me.

"Man, I like when you tell me what to do..."

"You never liked that."

I understood. He wasn't even listening to me anymore. I threw him on the ground. "Dude, I'm waiting for another one!"

"I won't even ask HOW MUCH OF IT YOU DRANK." I dragged him towards our house from his horns "I love how you care about me."

"Man...this place...I never thought it would be so much fun!" The bull laughed on the bed "The food, my best friend, there's everything I need! I almost want to give up the plan and stay here forever!" He sobbed again "I said almost!" He broke out into another laughter.

"What is he talking about?" I froze when I heard Nova asking me that. I didn't know he was there. He dropped a bucket filled with water on the ground.

"I don't know. He's probably delirious. He gets drunken easily."

Nova stared at me, he's clever enough to reveal my lie, but he, instead, changed topic. "There's good in everyone. This is the belief on our village is built on." He approached to Kai with his bucket "But they are scared. Scared to help people who did bad things. People like you."

"I'm a warrior. That's my job."

"Do you ever thought about all the people you killed? The pain they felt before they finally die. Their families waiting for them to return, but they didn't. Losing someone you love and care about. Do you understand these feelings?"

"On the battlefield you can't think about these things. The ones I killed were ready to kill me too."

He sighed "You can always spare them, but..I guess that's true..." Nova helped the bull drink some water.

"I never did something else except fighting." I weirdly admitted. Why am I telling him this?

"Oogway..." He turned to me sadly, but suddenly his mood changed. "You never had the chance to choose what you really wanted!" He grabbed my hand, his eyes were sparkling "I'll show you what I mean!"

He ran outside, closed the door leaving me alone with Kai "Did you see how he looked at you?! I think he's gay!" He shouted with another laughter.

I couldn't even think about what happened that Kai did something unexpected "I'll kill him...nobody's allowed to touch you" and he dragged me into his arms hugging me. I hid myself into my shell and fell asleep.


	3. Take a side - Prologue 3

He stopped in front of that door for 5 minutes, but for him it was an eternity. Will he find the right words? Will he accept? These and more question were making it far more difficult.

"Nova don't push yourself so much. It's okay to wait and..."

"I'm going." Yui's words helped him indirectly to take a decision. He pushed the door and disappeared inside.

Candles all around the place to keep the darkness away from there. "You're still meditating..." Nova said approaching to a giant panda sat on the floor. Legs crossed and his arms slightly raised in midair. "It's nighttime, you know, sleep."

"A good leader never rests. He must watch over everyone else."

"Yeah, sure..." He tried to end that useless conversation as fast as he could.

"Son..." He sighed showing disappointment.

Nova contained himself "I'm here to ask you a favour." He tried to appear as humble as possible "Father."

He stood up "I know what are you going to ask me." He moved right in front of him showing how different their sizes are and their clothes too. From a golden one, rich, highly decorated to a poor, common one, lacking of everything. "You want my permission to let the masters teach them Chi."

He wasn't a dangerous panda, but his presence felt quite intimidating to him. "Y-yes."

"I could allow it." He said moving around the place.

"What are you going to ask?" The panda crossed his arms waiting for the real deal to come out.

"You refused to train enough already. You took a couple of lessons and suddenly...you decided to quit."

"Father I'm not going to learn Chi, I'm sorry." He turned away.

"At least give me a good reason!" He appeared upset "Learning it will only HELP you. What's the problem about it?"

"Let's simply end this." He took a deep breath. "I want to leave the village." He stated trying to look as serious as possible.

He widened his eyes shocked "Wh-What?!"

"I know that you will leave your role as leader to me as soon as I'll learn that technique."

"And...aren't you proud?" He putted his paws on his shoulder "You are clever, smart, charming, everyone trusts you and believes in you! You can do great things here."

"This village is perfectly fine!" He shouted struggling free "I want to travel! Meet new people, help them, I want to be useful..."

"Listen, son. Your mother always wanted..."

He interrupted him "Don't drag mom in this! I'm sure that she will never keep me in here against my will!"

The giant panda tried to stop him from leaving, but he rushed outside slamming the door behind.

"Nova..." Yui came closer when he exited the house.

He was staring into the ground. He lifted his face to her when she called him. "I'm fine, really."

"But...you..." She eavesdropped the conversation.

He grabbed her hands "I need your help more than ever now."

She blushed "I'll do what I can."

"Thank you."

* * *

I woke up when someone shouted at me upset. "WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?!"

I thought was Nova. When I opened my eyes it was clearly morning, but then I realized... "Dawn had already passed by..." I said yawning enjoying my extra sleep time obtained.

Kai kicked me on the ground. "Why was I..." He blushed embarrassed remembering how he woke up.

His reaction brought back every memories connected to it. He doesn't remember anything else except for the hug. Can we say I'm lucky? "Next time you'll contain yourself instead of drinking like that without control!"

The bull hearing it understood that the hug wasn't the only thing he did and it turned the situation even more awkward for him. "Can we just...forget about it?"

I laughed mocking him "I can, but I don't know what Nova will say about it..."

He putted his paw on his cheek "No...not him too..." He gasped "let's just learn that stupid Chi thing and leave this place at once!" Kai muttered pushing me out of his way and walked outside.

I followed him to the kitchen where Yui was waiting for us, but something wasn't right. Nova didn't show up at all and I felt like the village was...empty. Kai noticed too, but we simply didn't cared about it. It wasn't our business. "What shall we do today?" I asked looking Kai literally throwing himself inside the bowl.

She smiled with the worst trying to cover my sadness to you ever and said "You have only one important chore to do."

I felt weird again. It shouldn't bother me, but, maybe it does bother me. I nodded to her and waited for Kai to finish his breakfast. "We must find out what's going on." He said when the panda parted ways from us after telling where she will be waiting. "We can use this situation at our advantage." He added dropping down the empty bowl.

"Are you sure about that?" I couldn't believe at what I was going to say. "We don't really need to know...we're going to learn it anyway so..."

"I know...I don't care either." He stood up from the chair "I'm sick of this place..."

He didn't understand what I was really saying. "Yeah you're right" I stated, but I didn't know if I could agree on that last phrase.

We arrived where the panda was. She was standing in front of a house. A simple, normal house. Nothing really different told us this is a special place or something "I thought we fixed already every single house here." Kai complained thinking the same thing.

"You are not going to do anything related to it." She said pushing the door.

What appeared was...kinda predictable since Nova told us the first day we arrived here, but I never thought we would actually do it.

"Oogway, listen." Kai said staring inside "I can't take care of children. Would you..."

I smiled "You'll do something else. Leave this to me."

"Before you go take this." Yui handed me over a scroll "Make sure to read it before you start" She told me as fast as while I walked inside leaving them behind.

I started to read thinking it will contain some sort of advice. 'Dear Oogway, I finally took a decision who will change my life entirely. I was afraid, scared and I hesitated to take action. When you came here I understood that you were just like me. Someone who never had a choice. They putted and forced us into a life without even asking us is this what you want? I'm going to leave the village. By the time you'll read this I will be far away already. I don't know your feelings and what you will think about this I'll simply give you a choice. Would you like to try to understand? Would you like to find something new? Something different besides...this? You can refuse, go to Yui and ask her about my actual position. Bring me back and they will thank you teaching our secret technique. You can say yes and try to understand the real meaning of my message. Do the chore Yui assigned you and, as I said before, ask her about my position. Did you see? In the end you will eventually get what you wanted. I'm not stopping you. I really wish for you the best. See you soon. Nova.'

This was the perfect opportunity to obtain what we were looking for and leave. I don't need to do it. He decided to give me a choice and I choose to get him back.

...

...

But my body wasn't moving towards the exit.

What's wrong with me?

Since when did I care? Since when did this bother me?

Wasn't I a warrior?

Someone who doesn't care about the others except for himself?

Kai is the only friend I needed.

I tried to convince myself, but it didn't work.

I raised up my head from the scroll and saw countless baby pandas turned towards me. "Hello...?" I said awkwardly.

Maybe I should give it a try. There's nothing wrong with it. Kai doesn't know I can skip it. I thought putting the scroll on a table next to me.

I felt so out-of-place. There isn't a word to describe that feeling. They surrounded me led by their naive and childish instincts to know, to explore and to understand who I was. Why was I so different etcetera etcetera.

Questions over questions upon questions with questions.

I decided to turn it into a game and started to question them back "And do you love your family? Will you do everything for them? You should make a present!"

It was...nice. First impressions can be wrong sometimes.

"Did you know how bad it feels like? Every people you kill...has a family. Can you imagine the pain? The tears dropped by their children?" Suddenly Nova's words echoed in my mind.

I didn't understand it at first. I reacted pretty lightly about it. Now I'm starting to realise that exist a pain even worse than the physical one.

"Aren't they...beautiful?" Yui's words brought me back to reality. She sent Kai somewhere and reached me.

"I guess so..." I replied reluctantly.

"I'm happy that you decided to try." She smiled at me. "You should...no nevermind."

"Where can I find him?" I said, but I was filled with doubts and questions. I didn't know what pushed me to continue.

"In the middle of the forest. Under the biggest rock you can find. There's our secret place where we go every time we can. He's waiting for you there."

"Can you..."

"Take care of your friend?" She nodded "Of course."

The message he left didn't specify about going with Kai or not, but...I felt like I needed to go there and met him alone.

My body was moving on his own. He was looking for the place she described when my mind was lost...wondering between the countless questions I have. I never cared about being good or being bad, I just did what I thought was right. I found myself sitting on a rock, observing the landscape. The white blanket covering the trees...I never realized how astonishing it was. It was snowing. I could stay there all the day staring at the snowflakes falling on us from the sky. "NOVA!" I heard multiple voices calling his name throughout the entire forest.

I waited.

My reason? I have plenty of reasons...

If I have to tell you one...

I liked the atmosphere.

I wanted to do something different and I decided to enjoy that masterpiece created by the nature. When the voices disappeared I finally stood up, climbed a tree and easily found the biggest rock. Right in the middle of the forest. I used that wooden stuff he gave to me the first day we met to lift the rock enough to reveal a hole into the ground. I jumped inside welcoming the darkness.

"This isn't how I imagined to meet you here..." Someone spoke, but I couldn't see a thing.

"Nova? I'm sorry...do you have something to..." he turned on something weird-looking not so far from where I was who created a little light...like a candle. "Thank you, but where are you?"

"Under."

I laughed "I thought you putted a pillow to make a comfortable landing!"

I stood up and helped him. "I usually don't bring outsiders in here..." He picked up that light source to give me a better view.

I took a look around, but there isn't so much to say about it. I don't know if they created this cave digging under the rock creating an underground home or they simply find it. "I know it's nothing special here..." he muttered when he noticed my curiosity "I'll build something better when I'll finally leave this place."

"I need to ask you a couple of questions..." I stated, but I wasn't sure if I wanted to know the answers.

He grabbed a backpack and walked towards the exit "Don't say anything because I won't help you." He brought me outside again. "You must find your own path alone." He waved his hands and shouted for help luring the closest pandas towards us "You still have some time. Think about it and decide." They reached us. He told them that I saved his life, that I deserved to have a reward. They accepted to teach us.

I felt bad.

Isn't it what we wanted from the start?

Maybe I feel bad because it isn't what we wanted.

It's what Kai wanted, not what I wanted.


End file.
